Our son has had 7 ear infections since mid April. In between the ear infections (spring/summer) he has had liquid in his ears which seems to also bother him but does not need antiboitics. This they feel this is from his allergies. So he is now being referred to have ear tubes put in. I read up and it seems to be straight forward and very common. He did have stomach surgery at 6 weeks so he has been under general anesthetic before.
Has anyone else child had continual ear infections....had tubes?

We went through this as well. It seems that in the very young, the eustachian tubes are more horizontal and don't allow the inner ear to drain very well. This resloves itself by the age of 5 when the child's head grow and the position of the tubes becomes more inclined.

My son had so many ear infections that they put tubes in when he was 18 months old. They said it was from a combination of his allergies and his reflux (constant upward pressure). He was playing normally that same day, and suddenly started speaking more clearly .. because he could finally hear properly! He never needed them replaced, and has never had an ear infection since, and that was 8 years ago. So I guess you could say we were very happy with the procedure and the outcome

Momtobunches, one of the reasons they delayed putting tubes in my son's ears was they didn't think his hearing was affected because he was so articulate. When they actually did a hearing test, he was nearly deaf when he had an infection, but could hear normal when it was cleared up. It turned out he was lip-reading, but because he spoke so well and so clearly, none of us suspected.

I started doing an at-home hearing test. If he didn't hear me opening a candy I'd book an appointment with the ENT.

_________________self: allergy to sesame seeds and peanuts
3 sons each with at least one of the following allergies: peniciilin, sulfa-based antibiotic, latex, insect bites/stings

My daughter so far has had no such problems (keeping my fingers crossed). When I was younger, I had this problem, which resolved itself when I was a round 8 years old. They put in tubes 3 times, they also had to take out my tonsils and adnoids as well, but I was much happier with the tubes in my ears, I could hear more clearly and didn't get infections as often (for about 2 years, I was on antibiotics about half the year total on and off for infections).

Procedures have improved since I was a child, my 3 operations left me with scarring in my ear canals and now I wear hearing aids (only in certain settings) and I lip read quite well, which is a skill that I picked up as a child when I could barely hear. Though I don't need to lip read much anymore, those surgeries sure are worth it.

Thank you all so much. We saw the E.N.T. last week, he called 3 days after our GP referred our son to him. It was like a Christmas Gift especially as his secretary said he is booking for April but if we came in that day he'd like to see our son asap. Our son is now on a list for getting the tubes put in, the dr. is hoping this can be done within 2 months. The ear infections cause his asthma to be uncontrolled (forget the other asthma triggers) as the infections never go away. I wasn't aware until our appt. that the ear infections and constant liquid could be related to his delayed speech. He is VERY delayed with his speech and when he does talk it is VERY unclear. I am so glad to read that many of you saw great improvements with your child's speech/articulation.
Sometimes I have to remind myself not to dwell on the health issues our son has but instead to be very thankful that we live in a country where we are able to give our son such good care as well as the fact that we now live in a time when many procedures are relatively 'simple'.

It's day surgery, and at that age they bounce back quite quickly. I suggest you bring a few things to keep him/her occupied. We usually picked up a small new toy. This was not a *reward* type of thing -- it was something to keep him content. It was hidden until after the surgery, and then kept him busy while he was waiting to be released.

My son did not have food allergies, but if your child does, I suggest contacting the hospital in advance to find out what brand of popsicles they have. The kids wake up with a sore throat (from the tube put down it for them to breath through), and they are given pain meds and popsicles. You don't want your child to see it, and then not be allowed to have it. If it's not a safe brand, maybe you can bring a few specifically for your child to have.

btw, although the throat hurts at first, I don't recall my son ever complaining of the ear hurting after getting tubes in.

_________________self: allergy to sesame seeds and peanuts
3 sons each with at least one of the following allergies: peniciilin, sulfa-based antibiotic, latex, insect bites/stings

The office called today and he is booked for Feb.1st. That is really good advice regarding the freezies, I have found the Crush brand before in the summer and they have no peanut/tree nut warning. I ironically did mention to my husband how glad I am we both can be there as I'm afraid to even go to the bathroom and leave our son alone in case someone comes and gives him any type of food/popsicle. I'll hunt and see if I can find any of the Crush brand freezies this time of year. If not I'll buy some Chapman's popsicles. (it's so cold out they would even be ok in the car ) . I'll pack some in a cooler with a freezer pack and leave them until we need them outside. And yes, the tubes are for our little man, he is 27 months right now. This may not be his Christmas gift but my husband and I are so thankful for such a speedy response from the dr., I really thought we'd be looking at next fall for a surgery date.

My Dad is an ENT (otolarygologist or ear,nose and throat for short) physician and I have worked in his office for many years. He used to do quite a few ear tubes until he learned about allergies and started having Moms put their kids on a milk free diet for 3 mo prior to surgery. So many of these kids with constant ear infections stayed healthy after going off of milk, they did not need the tubes and my Dad ended up quitting surgery and going into allergy full-time. Tubes do work wonderfully, but anyone considering them should also consider an allergy free diet first.

Great tip and I really do see that there are health benefits in trying diet changes but it isn't always practical. Our son is not only restricted in diet (as are most of our kids) due to allergies but is very picky. If I took away without needing to dairy and also grains he'd be left with nothing to eat. Trust me, I've tried for a year to get him to eat more things and to fatten him up to no avail.
I do appreciate the suggestion, I have heard amazing things from friends who are dealing with kids with autism and the benefits of removing gluten/processed foods/food dyes etc..

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